Monthly Archives: January 2013

Well it finally happened. After 27 years of unwavering service, the VDO quartz clock in my 1986 Porsche Carrera finally quit working. For the past month, it has been an on again, off again condition, which was a clue to its pending failure. So on Friday morning, I made the decision to remove the clock and take it into the team at North Hollywood Speedometer for repair.

This would be my second visit to North Hollywood Speedometer for gauge repair. One year ago, the odometer portion of my speedometer failed, and after reading about similar failures experienced by owners and their recommendations for repairs as posted on the Pelican Parts technical forum (www.forums.pelicanparts.com), one shop was consistently noted – North Hollywood Speedometer. I also recalled seeing North Hollywood Speedometer listed as the source of the Porsche gauge restorations in a variety of Porsche related magazines, highlighting articles about street and race car restoration projects. Based upon these references, I took my speedometer in for repair and within a week, had a fully repaired and detailed speedometer, returned and once again functioning perfectly in my car. They had even cleaned and polished the clear lens, removing the fine scratches on the outside of the face, and the haze that had accumulated on the inside from the past 26 years.

Now back to my broken clock… As I pulled into the parking lot of North Hollywood Speedometer, I fully expected (given the volume of work that they normally have from the Porsche community), to be told that I would be looking at a one week minimum for the repair of my clock. When I walked up to the counter, I was greeted by one of their technicians (Jeff) who asked how he could help. I told him about my inoperative clock, and then handed it to him for inspection. While examining the clock, Jeff asked me where I had driven from. I told him that I lived about an hours drive away, near the Los Angeles / Orange County border. Jeff’s next question totally caught me off guard; Would I like to wait for the repair? He said the company tries very hard to accommodate walk in customers from the area, and since I only had the one gauge, thus his offer for same day repair. Fortunately, I had the time to spare, so I replied yes, I would wait.

Jeff took the clock to his workstation, and immediately set about the task of disassembly. Once the inner workings were repaired and tested, his attention then shifted over to the cleaning of the clear lens. After polishing and several cleanings, he brought the lens over to me for approval. The lens once again looked brand new, so with my approval, he proceeded to the final re-assembly.

Once all of the parts were re-assembled ( outer gauge bezel, clear lens, inner bezel, clock face, clock mechanism and external housing), Jeff once again showed me the finished product for final approval.

The clock appeared brand new, just as it had on the day that my dad bought the car, and drove it home from the dealer. Jeff then bagged the clock, and after paying for the repair, I realized that the entire repair process had been completed in under 40 minutes.

Once I was back home, and with the addition of a new gauge seal sourced from the folks at Sierra Madre Collection (www.SMCparts.com), I was ready to reinstall the clock back into my car.

After reinstalling the light bulb into the back of the housing, and reconnecting two electrical leads, it was time to press the clock with its new seal back into place on the dash as seen below…

It’s no wonder that North Hollywood Speedometer has become the preferred shop for Porsche gauge restoration, especially within the Southern California Porsche community. So a big thank you to Kevin and his staff at North Hollywood Speedometer (nhspeedometer.com), for the quality of work performed, as well as the outstanding customer service being delivered to their clients. I would also like to add an additional thank you to Jeff for his meticulous repair and detail work on my clock.

Now all that remains is to figure out a good time for scheduling the cosmetic restoration of my remaining three dash gauges…

I’m sorry to disappoint those of you who thought this post might be written about Formula One driver Kimi Raikkonen. Instead, this weeks title was inspired by the frigid temperatures encountered by those of us present at Cars&Coffee/Irvine, the morning of January 12, 2013. Since I began attending this event back in 2008, the morning of the 12th was by far the coldest one I’ve ever experienced. But even with the record-breaking cold temperatures being experienced throughout Southern California, the Cars&Coffee faithful still showed up in droves, albeit decked out in heavy jackets, scarves, hats, gloves and uggs.

Unfortunately the one piece of gear that I had forgotten to pack the night before were my gloves, and by 7 AM, my right hand (camera holder) was suffering from exposure. My friend Gene, who came fully prepared wearing cold weather gear, magically produced from the back of his car, an extra pair of gloves (fly fishing to be specific), that he kindly loaned me for the duration of the morning. The benefit of this type of glove is that with the finger tips removed, you can still handle your camera and make fine adjustments while retaining a sense of touch. Within a couple of minutes, my right hand and shutter finger had regained color and warmed up, allowing me to continue on my photographic quest.

One of the first cars that I observed drive into the lot by the glow of its headlights, and then settle on Porsche row, was this rare 2011 Porsche type 997 Speedster, in Pure Blue.

To further commemorate the origins of their original Speedster, Porsche chose to limit the production of the 2011 model to a total of only 356 examples worldwide, and restricted the available color palette to only two colors; Pure blue as shown here and Carrara white.

Placed on the glove box of each Speedster is the build plaque, which displays the series number of each car from the total number produced. This particular model is #154 of 356.

Porsche even chose the Los Angeles Auto Show back in 2010, as the venue for their first of their two North American debuts of the 997 Speedster( the second location being Detroit).

Parked immediately to the left of the 997 Speedster, was one of the newest members of the Porsche family; a 2013 type 991 Carrera, in Dark Blue metallic.

Another unique Porsche and frequent visitor to Cars&Coffee, parked just down the row from the Type 991, was this Signal Orange, 1971 914-6 GT, Factory rally car.

The owner even had a small bound book placed on the roof, documenting the history behind this unique vehicle (below).

On this particular morning, the car showed up wearing a set of standard Porsche street wheels and tires, which appeared quite skinny, when compared to its standard Porsche 5 spoke, 15″ Fuchs alloy race wheels.

My next stop was over to the featured lot to see what hidden treasure awaited. Much to my surprise, parked amidst a group of Alfa Romeo’s was this beautiful black Ferrari 512BB, with its rear deck opened, revealing its 5 liter, flat 12 cylinder motor.

The paint finish on the 512 had to be one of the nicest black paint jobs I’ve seen on a Ferrari (below)…

with all 12 cylinders of Ferrari magic revealed out back… including the 4 sets of triple choke Weber carburetors (which would indicate that this car is a pre 1981 model), since Ferrari switched over to fuel injection in 1981, and rebadged the car as the 512 BBi.

After heading back over to the main parking area, I encountered Lotus row, however with considerably fewer cars in attendance on this morning…

Then moving down the row, and parked to the outside of the curbing , I came across one of my favorite Porsche models; a 2011 GT3, in black.

Walking around the car and checking it out, was like looking at a black, purpose-built high-speed mirror, capturing and reflecting all of its surroundings…

My next stop would be to the back row of the parking lot, in part to check out why a crowd had gathered. What I found was a collection of McLaren MP4-12C’s and a few select Audi R8 V-10’s thrown in for good measure.

An example of the new McLaren MP4-12C spider in Graphite Grey, as seen below.

And below, the single MP4-12-C painted in the classic McLaren Orange, a color anyone familiar with the classic McLaren Can Am race cars of the 1970s will recognize…

After the departure of the McLaren group, I wandered back through the lot to search for any cars that I had missed or that were late arrivals. As I approached Porsche row, I noticed that my friend Dave had opened up the rear deck lid on his slate gray, 1984 Porsche 930 turbo, revealing his new motor and its highly polished intercooler. I even had a willing subject in the background to serve as a backdrop for a quick experiment in composition…

One of the last cars I came across before packing up for the morning, was this Grand Prix white 1993 Porsche Type 964 RS America, wearing Martini racing stripes and door graphics. This car is another frequent visitor, however this was its first time with its new graphics.

Porsche’s intention was to build this car for the 1993 model year only, however due to increasing demand, production was extended out into early 1994. I recently learned that one of the telltale clues for differentiating between a 1993 and early 1994 model can be found by simply looking inside the car. For the late 1993 / early1994 models, Porsche chose to add the traditional rear folding jump sets, in place of the previously utilized, fixed storage bins found on all 1993 RS America models. Unfortunately, the rear seat area in this car was covered by a Martini racing beach towel, so no way to make a visual check on the rear seat configuration.

And with that the owner returned, opened the passenger door, and his dog climbed up into the back and settled on the towel. Then with a turn of the key, the engine came to life and the RS America and its occupants were gone. Now I will have to wait until the car returns, to determine whether it’s a 1993 or early 1994 model…

The first Cars&Coffee gathering of 2013 dawned cool, crisp and clear, and finally without the threat of rain. Obviously a very welcomed sight for those in attendance Saturday morning. And gauging by the sheer number of cars in attendance, all were eager to start the new year off in grand style.

So with camera in hand, I headed out in search of my first photographic subject for the new year. And the clock was ticking; due to a family commitment, I needed to leave early (by 8 am), so I needed to get busy. The cool, clear morning air, combined with the rising sun, made for some incredible lighting conditions, so what better way to kick off the new year than with a shot of a bright shiny red Speedster…

It seemed that in order to park in this particular section of Porsche row, your car had to be either black or silver, and be parked in an alternating pattern… did anyone else notice this?

Even the black Ford Thunderbird convertible, and silver Nissan 370 Z that were parked alongside the silver Speedster, adhered to the Porsche row parking protocol…

Parked directly across the aisle from Porsche row, was this rare black, 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RS, configured for right hand drive.

Flawless, mirror – like early morning reflections, and right hand drive…

Located several rows over and positioned perpendicular to Porsche row, was one of several 2012 Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4’s ringing in the new year; this one in Arancio Argos (orange)…

Detail of the rear glass louvers, for heat evacuation and protection of the V-12 motor seen lurking below…

Parked at the opposite end of the row, was one of several Audi R8’s in attendance; this particular model in Daytona Gray Pearl, was one of several V10 variants, and wearing a set of custom wheels by Stasis (above and below).

Another of the Audi R8’s in attendance, this one however parked alongside a brilliant red Porsche 911SC, adding a punch of color in contrast to the R8’s matte gray finish…

As I made my way through the parking lot, there parked under the tress, and just across from Porsche row, were these two rare Porsche 911s (both of which have graced my previous blog posts individually, but never together until now). First up was the Grand Prix white 1991 Porsche 964 Turbo, and parked immediately behind in Riviera blue, was a true, European model 1996 Porsche 993 Carrera RS Club Sport.

The 993 Carrera RS Club Sport… one of only 57 built by Porsche in 1996. For more details and photos of this Porsche 993 Carrera RS Club Sport model, please refer to my previous post via the following link.

The newly established Lotus row (below), rapidly establishing itself over that past several weeks, with an ever-increasing number of Evora’s and Elise in attendance each week…

Parked amidst it German brethren, was this beautifully restored, early 1960s vintage Gray Mercedes-Benz 300 D Automatic, 4 door Cabriolet as seen below.

Early morning reflections captured in flawless paint and chrome trim (above and below).

Even the motor and engine compartment were showroom fresh, and as highly detailed as the rest of the car.

The convertible top and its external chrome plated hinge with reflections…

Nothing like a whirlwind tour of Cars&Coffee in less than two hours, to start off the new year and answer the challenge of trying to capture a good cross-section of vehicles present for the first show of 2013. So here’s to recording and sharing the next 51 weeks worth of Southern California-based automotive events…

December was a difficult month for Cars&Coffee/Irvine, given the rainy Saturdays mornings that carried over from the end of November and into the first several weeks of December. Fortunately, for the last two weeks, the weather has cooperated and the event has been rain free. However, along with the arrival of winter to Southern California, came cold and brisk Saturday mornings as those experienced over the past two weeks; perfect for dusting off those racing jackets and for the consumption of the events namesake beverage, Coffee…

The final Cars&Coffee event for 2012 stayed true to form, and delivered up another cool morning with scattered gray clouds, but without rain. Porsche row was well represented and filled up quickly with some amazing cars.

The clear weather also brought out another frequent visitor to the show; the white 1966 Porsche 906 Carrera as seen below.

The owner was kind enough to open the rear deck, revealing the period correct, F.I.A. spec 2.0 liter boxer six race motor.

Parked over at the featured lot was this white 2011 Porsche GT3RS, with its tinted windows reflecting the approaching gray cloud banks…

A black, 1957 Corvette roadster, reflecting on its surroundings…

Parked across from Porsche row, was this like-new, low mileage Red 1989 Porsche Speedster, for sale and on display by the firm AutoKennel.

Another marque represented in large numbers that morning was Lotus, which included several examples of the new Evora coupe.

And located out on the very back row of the parking lot representing Audi, was this brand new 2012 R8, V10 Spyder, in Teak brown metallic.

Back on Porsche row, I had returned just in time for a brief conversation with Magnus Walker, just prior to his getting ready to leave. I wanted to ask him about the status of his latest creation, his 1972 911 STR 002, that I had been reading about on his website. He shared with me that the car was still undergoing its final shake down, fine tuning and detailing, but once the work was complete, he would return to Cars&Coffee to display his latest project. He then reached over to his passenger seat, grabbed several Urban Outlaw stickers and gave them to me, then wished me a Happy New Years, fired up his 911 and drove away.

Shortly after his departure and my grabbing this shot, the gray clouds that had been present all morning grew even darker, and a light drizzle began to fall. Reading this as a sign, I headed back to my car, and packed up my gear to return home. By the time I reached Anaheim on the northbound 5 freeway, the spotty drizzle had turned into full-blown rain, which continued for the rest of my trip home.

Ironically, I checked out the Magnus Walker website on Sunday the 30th and found the following post (Sunday December 30, 2012, “Hoosier in the rain”), recounting his sketchy return trip home from Cars&Coffee in the rain, which can be accessed via the following link.

This marks my last blog post for 2012, and I would like to thank everyone who visited digitaldtour.com this past year, and also to take a moment to wish everyone a Happy and prosperous 2013.